When the Jac and Jack flagship store opened in March of last year on Sydney’s à la mode William Street in Paddington, the brand’s sumptuous range of beautiful knitted sweaters, cotton dresses and cashmere scarfs were finely earmarked. Spearheaded by Jacqueline Hunt and Lisa ‘Jack’ Dempsey back in 2004, the company’s discourse has been to provide a longevity in raw materials in the creation of women’s and men’s wear with a quality to stapled archetypal garments. Their combined and design expertise has ensured that though Australian local manufacturing has severely subsided over recent years, research and design is locally maintained using the best artisan makers spanning from Italy to India.
The brand’s impulse is a simple, timeless aesthetic. This is engaged by the notion that the emotional and tactile feel of wearing one of their garments such as a men’s cotton shirt or woven cashmere scarf immediately feels distinctive. The sensitivity feeling of regular cotton is foreshadowed by woven Egyptian or Sea Island cotton from the British Sea Isles. The brand’s inherently reflects the nonchalance of Australia’s shores, where shreathed and looser silhouettes, tucked or cinched at the waist gestures a soft twisted vine of contemporary Australian luxury.
When indeed their first flagship shore did open in March 2010, the blue lake painted facade of a converted Victorian terrace into a retail presence was totally transform from within. A harmonious ambience refracted by the white walls and ceilings and unpolished timber floor, folded v-neck knitted sweaters in a range of warm, earthy tones sit opposite a gilded gold wall rail where organic cotton and silk garments sit neatly.
Stepping deeper into the store’s domain, your greeted by the store’s manager Audrey who politely remarks that the men’s section is located upstairs. Welcoming visitors can easily miss that the store’s upper loft exists where the men’s range designer Pat Blue has created a resolutely modern interpretation of essential male staples. A non-fussed concept, the lightweight cotton chinos and fine textured striped front pocket collar shirts have been made to be worn trans-seasonally and virtually combined with any other garment. The loft feels airy and the aural scent spring and fresh.
The brand has further expanded its fabric range with the inclusion of hand-crafted eyewear, an organic towel and beach collection made from organic cotton and linen. Jac and Jack have sighted that it isn’t just the provision of a set ‘ready-to-wear’ range as part of their brand philosophy but defining an entire lifestyle and personal expression.
